


Memorial

by supershadsy



Category: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-07
Updated: 2016-07-07
Packaged: 2018-07-22 05:12:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7421287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/supershadsy/pseuds/supershadsy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>"Do you think if we called to him, he would hear us?"</i>
</p><p>Zack and Aerith reminisce about their experiences with Cloud.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Memorial

**Author's Note:**

> This is a formatting _nightmare_. Er, happy Clack day? It's not entirely Clack, I know, but when I start doing a lot of poly [with a certain group,](http://archiveofourown.org/works/6380188) it's hard for me to back out of it. And I'm a multi-shipper. _Anyway,_ enjoy!

_(“...Zack?”)_

_(“Hm? Aerith…”)_

_(“Are you watching him again?”)_

_(“Yeah. He’s out doing a delivery. Damn, that’s a slick bike he’s got.”)_

_(“Hehe. You’re cute. He does look cool.”)_

_(“...He turned out all right, didn’t he? Few bumps in the road, here and there…”)_

_(“Oh, you don’t know the_ half _of it.”)_

_(“Hey, I might not have been there, but I was watching. Gotta...keep an eye on him, y’know? I told him...I told him that--”)_

_(“I know.”)_

_(...)_

_(“What’s the matter?”)_

_(...)_

_(“...You miss him.”)_

_(“...Yeah, I do. I wish...I could’ve been there with him longer. Maybe...he would’ve had a better time of things. I don’t know. Something…”)_

_(“He might’ve been more of himself a little sooner. He does a terrible impression of you.”)_

_(laughter)_

_(“It’s not his style, not at all! Cloud Strife...is not Zack Fair.”)_

_(“There can only be one.”)_

_(“Oh, you…”)_

_(“Still…”)_

_(“I know. You loved him, didn’t you?”)_

_(...!)_

_(“It’s okay. I loved him too.”)_

_(“...I…_

_...remember…”)_

_We were riding down to our next assignment, he was one of the standards assigned to me. He used to get motion sickness really bad, but I sat next to him and rubbed his back, tried to make him feel better. I don’t know if it actually helped, but he took his helmet off, he looked up at me, and he smiled, smiled and said “thanks, Zack” with those big eyes. I hugged him and said, "no problem", and kept him in the crook of my arm for the rest of the trip...  
_

_(“...And it felt good._

_“I wanted to do more things for him like that.”)_

_(“Mmm._

_“Oh, are we sharing? Then, let’s see…”)_

_We had taken shelter on the outskirts somewhere, just to rest for the night. Everyone else was asleep, even Cloud on watch was dozing. But I could feel the thunder on the horizon, I could smell the rain. And sure enough, I saw the lightning on the horizon, and I got up from the tent to shake Cloud awake. “Wake up,” I said to him. “It’s going to rain soon, get inside.” Sleepy eyes in his SOLDIER uniform, he nodded and sat at the edge of the tent while it poured, poured, poured._

_I stayed with him that night, even though he was quiet. Could we have even had a conversation in the downpour? I doubt it. Over time, we sat closer and closer, and when I woke up the next morning, I was on his lap, and he had a hand over my hair…_

_(“It was nice, it was calm. It felt like one of the first times I got to see the real Cloud.”)_

_(“Yeah. He’s a sweetheart.”)_

_(“He is.”)_

_(“Do you think…_

_“If we called to him…_

_“He would hear us?”)_

_(giggling,_

_“Well, there’s only one way to find out, isn’t there?”)_

_(“...Together?”)_

_(“Together.”)_

_(“Cloud…!”)_

Cloud pulled his motorcycle over to the side of the road. It was a hillside that sloped into a ragged, tree-laden ravine, all the way down into a rushing river that coursed alongside the winding pavement. He perched his riding goggles on his head, scanning the horizon. _I swear,_ he thought to himself, _I swear I heard someone…_

_...someone call out to me._

He took a deep breath of the fresh, pine scented air, when he heard it again.

_(“Cloud!”)_

Instinctively, his head jerked up to the sky. _That voice. It’s familiar...but at the same time...it’s not._ He flexed his hand in his glove and mounted his bike, perching back on the seat. _Maybe...it’s just the wind--_

His cellphone buzzed in his pocket, jerking him out of his thoughts. Fumbling, he snatched it from his pants pocket and glanced at the read-out. _7th Heaven. Tifa._ He flicked it open and held it to his ear. “Yeah?”

 _“Hey,”_ Tifa replied. _“You on your way back? I’ve got another delivery ready for you. This one’s closer to Edge.”_

“All right. I’ll be there in a few.”

_“Sounds good.”_

“Later, Ti.”

As soon as he hung up, he rested his hands on the handlebars of his bike. The wind picked up, rushing all around him, and began to whisper:

_(“Keep doing your best.”)_

Cloud situated his goggles over his eyes, a small smile on his face. _Yeah,_ he mused, revving the engine. _I will. Thank you…_

_(Zack)_

_(Aerith)_

_...I will._

With that, he peeled out onto the road, tires squealing, and sped back off onto the highway, the wind at his back giving him extra speed into the dipping horizon.


End file.
